China's May Day Holiday: Take 4 Days Off for 11-Day Break, Many Regions Offer Red Envelopes to Attract Tourists
China's May Day holiday this year allows for an 11-day break with just 4 days of leave, leading to a surge in family travel bookings and an expected record high in personnel movement. Many regions are distributing 'red envelopes' (digital coupons) to stimulate consumption and attract tourists.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 29, 2026 at 20:11
- 🔍 Collected: April 29, 2026 at 20:31 (19 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 30, 2026 at 03:37 (7h 5m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency, Taipei, April 29) The Chinese government has implemented multiple measures to stimulate domestic consumption. This year's May Day holiday allows for an 11-day consecutive break with just 4 days of leave, coupled with many schools granting spring breaks, boosting family travel bookings. The total personnel movement during this year's May Day holiday is expected to reach a new high, with many regions distributing 'red envelopes' to attract tourists and boost consumption.
China's official May Day Labor Day holiday is 5 days (May 1 to 5). If one takes 4 days off from April 27 to 30 (4 days before the holiday) or May 6 to 9 (4 days after the holiday), an 11-day consecutive break is possible. In addition, many local schools are coordinating 2 to 3 days of spring break with the May Day holiday, further boosting tourism consumption during the period.
According to comprehensive reports from The Paper and China Business News, more than 60 localities in various provinces and cities will have an "extra-long May Day holiday" for primary and secondary school students this year.
Reports from several Chinese online travel platforms show that the first "spring break + May Day holiday" linkage, combined with the "take 4, get 11" leave arrangement around May Day, will create a 17-day travel peak from April 24 to May 10.
Following last year's May Day holiday, which saw a record high of 1.467 billion person-times in total social personnel movement, a report from Spring Tour shows that as of now, domestic travel bookings for this year's May Day holiday have increased by nearly 20% compared to last year.
China's Ministry of Transport's Deputy Director of Transport Services, Gao Bo, predicted at a press conference yesterday that the total cross-regional personnel movement during this year's May Day holiday will reach a historical high of 1.52 billion person-times, a 4% increase year-on-year.
The report mentioned that due to fluctuations in international fuel prices, air ticket prices for this year's May Day holiday have reached a high point in recent years. As uncertainties in outbound travel increase, many tourists are turning to "in-depth domestic experiential tours."
Due to the extended May Day holiday, data from the travel platform "Qunar" shows that the peak travel period for this year's May Day holiday is lower than in previous years, with more people choosing off-peak travel; travel volume on weekends before and after May Day has increased by over 10% compared to last year.
Reports from multiple travel platforms indicate that school spring breaks have significantly boosted travel volume. At the same time, "family travel" has become the main force during this year's May Day holiday.
Qunar data shows that cities with spring breaks, such as Hangzhou, Ningbo, Shenyang, and Changsha, are among the popular cities for early departures by plane before May Day. Among them, flight bookings from Yueyang, Hunan, and Zhangjiajie increased by 3.8 times and 2.2 times, respectively. Search popularity for several popular scenic spots during spring break and May Day has increased several times. As of now, bookings for scenic spot tickets by tourists aged 13 to 18 have surged by 5.6 times.
At the same time, the Chinese government is organizing cultural and tourism activities nationwide, with many regions distributing consumption vouchers and other travel subsidies to attract tourists.
China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism held a media promotion conference for the 2026 National "May Day" Cultural and Tourism Consumption Week yesterday, stating that various regions will launch seasonal cultural and tourism products and activities focusing on spring outings, parent-child entertainment, and study tours, holding approximately 13,700 cultural and tourism consumption events and distributing over RMB 284 million (approximately NT$1.3 billion, same below) in consumption vouchers and other consumption subsidies.
Chongqing Municipal Commission of Commerce Deputy Director Sun Xiyong also stated yesterday that from April 25 to May 5, Chongqing will launch an 11-day 2026 "May Day" Golden Consumption Week, linking with major businesses across the city to launch over 700 special consumption promotion activities, claiming cumulative benefits exceeding RMB 1 billion.
According to data from China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism Data Center, during the 5-day May Day holiday in 2025, domestic travel reached 314 million person-times, a year-on-year increase of 6.4%; total domestic tourist spending was RMB 180.269 billion, an increase of 8%. The report said that in contrast, this year's extended holiday may stimulate more tourists and consumption.
The report quoted a travel agency manager as saying that in April this year, spring breaks for primary and secondary school students in some cities stimulated study tours, and train tickets for the spring break were sold out in seconds. These phenomena indicate that the stimulating effect of spring break on tourism has already emerged.
According to a report from Tuniu.com, spring breaks for primary and secondary schools in many parts of Zhejiang are connected to the May Day holiday, forming another "3+5" extra-long holiday after the Spring Festival long holiday, significantly stimulating local users' travel enthusiasm. Meituan data also shows that from April 28 to May 5, parent-child homestay bookings from Hangzhou sources increased by more than 10 times. (Edited by Yang Sheng-ru/Qiu Guo-qiang) 1150429
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(Central News Agency, Taipei, April 29) The Chinese government has implemented multiple measures to stimulate domestic consumption. This year's May Day holiday allows for an 11-day consecutive break with just 4 days of leave, coupled with many schools granting spring breaks, boosting family travel bookings. The total personnel movement during this year's May Day holiday is expected to reach a new high, with many regions distributing 'red envelopes' to attract tourists and boost consumption.
China's official May Day Labor Day holiday is 5 days (May 1 to 5). If one takes 4 days off from April 27 to 30 (4 days before the holiday) or May 6 to 9 (4 days after the holiday), an 11-day consecutive break is possible. In addition, many local schools are coordinating 2 to 3 days of spring break with the May Day holiday, further boosting tourism consumption during the period.
According to comprehensive reports from The Paper and China Business News, more than 60 localities in various provinces and cities will have an "extra-long May Day holiday" for primary and secondary school students this year.
Reports from several Chinese online travel platforms show that the first "spring break + May Day holiday" linkage, combined with the "take 4, get 11" leave arrangement around May Day, will create a 17-day travel peak from April 24 to May 10.
Following last year's May Day holiday, which saw a record high of 1.467 billion person-times in total social personnel movement, a report from Spring Tour shows that as of now, domestic travel bookings for this year's May Day holiday have increased by nearly 20% compared to last year.
China's Ministry of Transport's Deputy Director of Transport Services, Gao Bo, predicted at a press conference yesterday that the total cross-regional personnel movement during this year's May Day holiday will reach a historical high of 1.52 billion person-times, a 4% increase year-on-year.
The report mentioned that due to fluctuations in international fuel prices, air ticket prices for this year's May Day holiday have reached a high point in recent years. As uncertainties in outbound travel increase, many tourists are turning to "in-depth domestic experiential tours."
Due to the extended May Day holiday, data from the travel platform "Qunar" shows that the peak travel period for this year's May Day holiday is lower than in previous years, with more people choosing off-peak travel; travel volume on weekends before and after May Day has increased by over 10% compared to last year.
Reports from multiple travel platforms indicate that school spring breaks have significantly boosted travel volume. At the same time, "family travel" has become the main force during this year's May Day holiday.
Qunar data shows that cities with spring breaks, such as Hangzhou, Ningbo, Shenyang, and Changsha, are among the popular cities for early departures by plane before May Day. Among them, flight bookings from Yueyang, Hunan, and Zhangjiajie increased by 3.8 times and 2.2 times, respectively. Search popularity for several popular scenic spots during spring break and May Day has increased several times. As of now, bookings for scenic spot tickets by tourists aged 13 to 18 have surged by 5.6 times.
At the same time, the Chinese government is organizing cultural and tourism activities nationwide, with many regions distributing consumption vouchers and other travel subsidies to attract tourists.
China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism held a media promotion conference for the 2026 National "May Day" Cultural and Tourism Consumption Week yesterday, stating that various regions will launch seasonal cultural and tourism products and activities focusing on spring outings, parent-child entertainment, and study tours, holding approximately 13,700 cultural and tourism consumption events and distributing over RMB 284 million (approximately NT$1.3 billion, same below) in consumption vouchers and other consumption subsidies.
Chongqing Municipal Commission of Commerce Deputy Director Sun Xiyong also stated yesterday that from April 25 to May 5, Chongqing will launch an 11-day 2026 "May Day" Golden Consumption Week, linking with major businesses across the city to launch over 700 special consumption promotion activities, claiming cumulative benefits exceeding RMB 1 billion.
According to data from China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism Data Center, during the 5-day May Day holiday in 2025, domestic travel reached 314 million person-times, a year-on-year increase of 6.4%; total domestic tourist spending was RMB 180.269 billion, an increase of 8%. The report said that in contrast, this year's extended holiday may stimulate more tourists and consumption.
The report quoted a travel agency manager as saying that in April this year, spring breaks for primary and secondary school students in some cities stimulated study tours, and train tickets for the spring break were sold out in seconds. These phenomena indicate that the stimulating effect of spring break on tourism has already emerged.
According to a report from Tuniu.com, spring breaks for primary and secondary schools in many parts of Zhejiang are connected to the May Day holiday, forming another "3+5" extra-long holiday after the Spring Festival long holiday, significantly stimulating local users' travel enthusiasm. Meituan data also shows that from April 28 to May 5, parent-child homestay bookings from Hangzhou sources increased by more than 10 times. (Edited by Yang Sheng-ru/Qiu Guo-qiang) 1150429
Stand with the facts, every sponsorship you provide is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency's "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
Text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.